Facing the most difficult job market in the last 30 years, job seekers may try to stand out among the competition by being creative and using unconventional tactics to be noticed by an employer. Does this approach work for government employment?
Differentiating yourself from your competition makes some sense in this environment. The idea is to show that you are the best prepared to hit the ground running by researching what the priority areas are for the organizational unit where the job exists and understanding the issues associated with those priority areas. Even better is to have someone trusted by the organization on your list of references. Government employers are looking for safe choices first. That is usually someone who will abide by the organizations rules, be comfortable in the existing culture of the organization and flexible enough to accept assignments outside of the positions primary responsibilities. A reference that can attest that you have those qualities gets you one step closer to employment.
There’s really no need to go over the top to get noticed. For the majority of government positions, a really well written cover letter is adequate. You would be surprised at how many badly written cover letters and resumes there are. One tip is to have the smartest person you know review your resume and come up with a few questions about your education and experience. Use the questions to help you improve your resume or answer the questions in your cover letter. Reviewing the resume advice on the menu above is also recommended.